SAM RYDER + TORS + CHARLOTTE JANE – BRIGHTON DOME 5.4.23
As the bandwagon that is rapidly becoming a juggernaut known as Sam Ryder rolls into the Brighton Dome for the final night of the sold out UK tour, we were waiting to see if the latest post Eurovision pop sensation could live up to the hype, and Sam does not disappoint. He is that good.
With an intro of Abba’s greatest hits playing to get everyone in the mood, the feel good factor continued as the lights dimmed and Sam, in a seriously glittering tracksuit, bounded onto the stage, full of exuberance. The audience were clearly up for a party and Sam was all set to deliver. From the opening number ‘Somebody’ it was a full-time feel-good show. From the moment he entered the stage he was working the audience and for the next 95 minutes did not stop.
The set itself was predominantly built around his latest album ‘There’s Nothing But Space, Man!’ with twelve of the fourteen album tracks being played live tonight, as well as a handful of cover versions.
At this point I will raise my only real criticism, not that it is a major issue, but due to a limited band size, a drummer and one guitarist, there was a reliance to fill out the sound on stage with backing tapes. Just get a bassist and keyboard player next time. It needs however to be said that Sam does not need backing tapes to back up his voice. That is the real deal.
The set itself covered all areas of Sam’s musical background with the more pop friendly ‘Living Without You’ following. A song on which on the album he dueted with Sigala and David Guetta, although there were no surprise guests tonight. There is also no surprise that he also likes to show his rockier side, and regularly his guitar would be strapped to him for ripping out heavy rock style guitar solos.
It is clear that Sam Ryder is a phenomenon that has almighty potential. The question is whether he can continue his upward momentum. On this showing I would say so. He is an artist who can clearly wear more than one type of music on his sleeve and has the ability to mix up genres well. Whether he is singing a light pop tune, arms waving and crowd singing, delivering a soulful power ballad, or shredding on his guitar the mix works. Tonight saw a serious mix of all and it does raise the question about where he wants to sit as a musician. He can certainly rock out and his pre-solo work is testament to that. Yet he also holds the ability to reach out to the pop fan and produce the highest level of pleasing pop music that can transcend ages, as the make up of the audience tonight bore out. Perhaps he will make his own niche where he can comfortably win over fans in both areas.
From Freddie Mercury-esque audience participations which also showed his humorous side to the cheeky banter with individuals in the audience he showed that he is more than adept at conducting the party at his own show. He is a powerhouse of a performer and a born entertainer and hardly stops for a breath as he takes the audience through his latest album, with each song being received as rapturously as the one before.
So what about the songs? The set is variable and there is something there for everyone, whether the pop charm of ‘Living Without You’, or the power ballad feel of ‘All The Way Over’, which showed his phenomenal vocal range and saw him ringing every drop of emotion out of the vocal, through to the medley of Candi Staton’s ‘You Got The Love’ (probably better known as a cover by Florence and the Machine), Taylor Swift’s, ‘We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together’ and ‘Paramore’s emo-epic ‘Misery Business’ which saw Sam’s hair flying, guitar posturing and basically rocking out as though he were at Download.
The encores continued the musical variety, with Sam entering the stage for ‘Lost In You’, which saw him starting the song alone with his guitar, holding it as a semi acoustic piece before the rest of the band kicked in, through to an impromptu singalong of Abba’s ‘Waterloo’. After all it was at that very same venue 49 years earlier that the Swedish tour-de-force were released on a waiting world. With that Eurovision reference it came down to the last song of the night, and of course the one that everyone in the Dome had been waiting for, Sam’s mega hit ‘Space Man’. With an audience on their feet belting out the vocals, and trying to hit the high notes, let’s leave that to Sam …he can do it; everyone was in their element.
So, ninety-five minutes of pure pop-rock perfection from an artist who has the world ahead of him. Let’s just hope that Sam isn’t a flash in the pan. On this performance it seems that he is here to stay and has plenty to say. Certainly, he is a musical breath of fresh air.
Sam Ryder setlist:
‘Somebody’
‘Living Without You’ [ David Guetta and Sigala collaboration]
‘Put A Light On Me’
‘Tiny Riot’
‘Ten Tons’
‘Deep Blue Doubt’
‘All The Way Over’
‘Whirlwind’
‘Mountains’
‘This Time’
‘You Got The Love’ (Florence & The machine cover) (Snippet)
‘We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together’ (Taylor Swift cover) (Snippet)
‘Misery Business’ (Paramore cover)
‘More’
(encore)
‘Lost In You’
‘Waterloo’ (ABBA cover)
‘Space Man’
Tors
The second support band were west country indie-pop band Tors, a three piece, comprising of brothers Matt and Theo Weedon on guitars and Jack Bowden on Drums. The band title their music as harmonic-indie as that comes over in the presentation tonight.
They are a young band at the beginning of their career and certainly on this showing have potential and are a promising light arriving on the music scene. From the opener ‘Heavy Hearts,’ through to ‘Honey’, and then ‘Garden On The Kitchen Floor’ they showed through the trilogy of opening songs that are more than capable of producing clearly well written, and carefully crafted catchy indie-pop songs with hooks that you could hang your coat on. They certainly received a good reception from the audience who clapped along with the band as encouraged.
‘Amsterdam’ took on a darker tone about a relationship break-up, before ‘Miracle’, dedicated to the dreamers in Brighton produced an upbeat hook laden and catchy return.
The latest single ‘Anything Can Happen’ followed, and showed why it is getting interest and airplay before the final number ‘Empty Hands’ with its singalong chorus line of “I’ve got love” rounded up what was a very enjoyable thirty minutes. On this showing I would suggest when they return to Brighton on 13th June at The Hope and Ruin, get down there and see for yourself. Tickets are available HERE. One for the future.
Tors:
Matt Weedon – guitars & vocals
Theo Weedon – guitars
Jack Bowden – drums
Tors setlist:
‘Heavy Hearts’
‘Honey’
‘Garden On The Kitchen Floor’
‘Amsterdam’
‘Miracle’
‘Anything Can Happen’
‘Empty Hands’
Charlotte Jane
Starting this evening was young singer songwriter Charlotte Jane who not only had the job of being first opener, but also playing a very stripped down set consisting of her on vocals backed by a keyboard player (apologies was unable to get a name). This in itself is a difficult environment as it completely lays the singer bare to scrutiny. On this performance it was clear that Charlotte Jane has an incredible voice and the ability to pen a fine collection of songs. Because of the format of singer, pianist the set in sound was quite one-dimensional, however that should not be seen as a negative as it enabled Charlotte to showcase her vocal abilities.
She has an excellent voice ranging from the soft vocal of ‘Down Days’, through to the soul-blues feel of the Chris Stapleton cover ‘Tennessee Whiskey’, although the poor audience participation section reduced her to fits of laughter.
‘Coming Home’ showcased her new single as an independent artist, and ‘All My Life’ was written about, and dedicated to her nephew who had been born with heart problems. This was a beautiful piece and had a similar feel to Amy Wadge’s ‘Love’ tune.
It would be interesting to hear Charlotte Jane with a full band accompaniment. On this performance she certainly has the songs and the song-writing ability.
Charlotte Jane setlist:
‘Down Days’
‘I Know Better’
‘Tennessee Whiskey’ (Chris Stapleton cover)
‘Out In The Open’
‘Coming Home’
‘All My Life’
‘Nervous’
www.instagram.com/charlottejanemusic
